Authorities to decide fate of Dorner reward money

By Melissa Gray, CNN

Updated 10:15 AM ET, Sat February 16, 2013

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Photos: Manhunt for Christopher Dorner – Detectives investigate the scene where officers fired on a vehicle they believed was Christopher Dorner's on February 7, in Torrance, California. Two people in the truck were wounded.

Hide Caption

1 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – An employee of Southern California Edison surveys the damage at the burned-out cabin where the remains of multiple-murder suspect and former Los Angeles Police Department officer Christopher Dorner were found on Friday, February 15, in Big Bear, California.

Hide Caption

2 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – A statue of an angel stands on a wood column in front of the burned cabin on February 15.

Hide Caption

3 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – An evidence flag placed by San Bernardino County Sheriff's crime scene investigators sits on pile of rubble in the burned cabin on February 15.

Hide Caption

4 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Cindy Bachman, public information officer for the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department, updates the media after a standoff and a shootout with Dorner on Tuesday, February 12.

Hide Caption

5 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Police search cars at a blockade as they come down off the mountain during a manhunt for Dorner on February 12.

Hide Caption

6 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Cindy Bachman, information officers for the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, speaks to reporters at a roadblock near Big Bear Lake, California, on Tuesday, February 12. Christopher Jordan Dorner has been the subject of a massive manhunt and is accused of killing one police officer and wounding two others, as well as killing the daughter of his police union representative and her fiance on Sunday.

Hide Caption

7 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Authorities take positions during the manhunt for former LAPD officer Christopher Jordan Dorner near the town of Angelus Oaks, California, on Tuesday.

Hide Caption

8 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – San Bernardino County Sheriff SWAT team members return to the command post at Bear Mountain in Big Bear Lake, California, on Friday, February 8, after heavy snow hindered the manhunt for ex-LAPD cop Christopher Jordan Dorner.

Hide Caption

9 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Officers keep watch outside of the Twin Towers Jail in response to an unconfirmed sighting of Dorner in Los Angeles.

Hide Caption

10 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Officers investigate the burned out truck of Christopher Jordan Dorner that was discovered at the base of Bear Mountain Ski Resort in Big Bear Lake, California, on Thursday, February 7.

Hide Caption

11 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Department of Homeland Security officers search vehicles at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in San Diego on February 7 as they search for former LAPD officer Christopher Dorner.

Hide Caption

12 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck speaks at a press conference about the manhunt for Dorner as photos of the suspect stand in the background on February 7.

Hide Caption

13 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – An illuminated sign at San Diego State University along Interstate 8 displays information about Dorner's last known vehicle on February 7.

Hide Caption

14 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – San Diego Harbor Police officers near Naval Base Point Loma armed with high-powered firearms walk along a street on February 7 in San Diego.

Hide Caption

15 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Investigators inspect a bullet-ridden squad car where a police officer was shot on Magnolia Avenue in Corona, California on February 7.

Hide Caption

16 of 17

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt17 photos

Ex-cop at center of California manhunt – Police stand guard near a LAPD car where a police officer was shot on Magnolia Avenue as officers across the state remain on high alert.

Hide Caption

17 of 17

Story highlights

City put up $1 million reward in Dorner case

Question is whether anyone met wording of offer

Dorner died in mountain cabin east of Los Angeles

It's the million-dollar reward that's raising a million-dollar question: Who, if anyone, is entitled to the money offered in the hunt for Christopher Dorner?

The catch is that Dorner, the rogue former Los Angeles police officer who sparked a massive manhunt, was never captured. He died after a shootout and fire at a California mountain cabin this week after, authorities say, he killed four people and wounded three others.

The city of Los Angeles put up the $1 million reward Sunday, together with other jurisdictions, groups, and private donors. It had been a few days since Dorner was last seen, and they wanted to generate tips.

"More than 20 jurisdictions and entities are involved in this reward, so all of them will be coming together to collectively determine whether any individual(s) qualify for it," the LAPD said in a statement Friday. "Our personal hope is that the reward will be distributed, but we must follow the rules and respect the procedures of each entity."

The police department said they have had a lot of inquiries about the reward. It reminded the public that no money can be distributed until the investigation is complete.

One person who feels he deserves the reward is camp ranger Rick Heltebrake, one of Dorner's last victims. Heltebrake was driving Tuesday near Big Bear Lake, California, when Dorner approached him, put a gun to his head and stole his truck.

JUST WATCHED

Dorner's ex: 'Something wasn't right'

MUST WATCH

JUST WATCHED

Dorner hostages: We thought he'd kill us

MUST WATCH

Dorner hostages: We thought he'd kill us01:32

PLAY VIDEO

Dorner was on the run from California Fish and Wildlife wardens who had spotted him on the area's icy roads. Dorner and the wardens exchanged gunfire before Dorner crashed his car, carjacked Heltebrake's truck and drove it to the nearby cabin.

After Dorner drove off, Heltebrake said he ducked off the road and called his friend, a sheriff's deputy, to alert him.

Speaking Thursday to CNN about the reward, Heltebrake said, "I do think I deserve it. I believe it was my phone call to that sheriff's deputy that directed them to the location where Dorner was, and I believe it was my phone call that put an end to the largest manhunt in Los Angeles history."

Heltebrake said he wants to use the reward money to set up college funds for the children of the two law enforcement officers killed by Dorner. He also mentioned possible improvements to the scout camp where he works, which he said is rundown.

"Did anybody ever believe that he was going to be captured and convicted? I don't think so," Heltebrake told CNN's Randi Kaye. "I think they put that (clause) in there possibly to have an out for later. I believe that that money was put up by the private sector and basically corporate donors, not from taxpayer money or anything like that, and I believe those people wanted that money to go somewhere, and I'd like to do some good with it."

Heltebrake said he could split the money with Karen and Jim Reynolds, the couple who encountered Dorner in their Big Bear-area condo Tuesday morning, before the carjacking. Though Dorner tied up the couple, they managed to free themselves and call 911.

"If they want half of it, I believe they're deserving of half of it," Heltebrake said.

Speaking Wednesday after their ordeal, the Reynolds said they were simply happy to be alive and hadn't thought much about the reward money.

Medical examiners have positively identified the body of the renegade former Los Angeles police officer Christopher Dorner, the man authorities say killed four people and wounded three others in a vendetta against his old comrades.

An ex-girlfriend of slain murder suspect Christopher Dorner said the former L.A. policeman worked in a pressure cooker and she was afraid he would target her after she heard he was the object of a manhunt.

The life and apparent death of Dorner, who declared war against police corruption, has generated a social media fringe of fans who are asserting that he was really a hero seeking justice, despite being a suspect in four killings.

Alleged cop killer Christopher Jordan Dorner published an 11-page manifesto, apparently seeking to explain or justify murder. Targeting the children and spouses of officers is one of many specific threats Dorner makes.